The present invention relates to an improved cost-efficient vibration-isolating mounting for motors and, more particularly, for mounting electric motors and connected pump assemblies as used in the jetted bath and spa industry.
Whirlpool bath and spa-type installations typically include a tub structure having a plurality of water jets for introducing a pressurized stream of water and air into the tub and a suction inlet from which water is withdrawn. The water withdrawn from the tub through the suction inlet is provided to a shaft-driven recirculation pump which pressurizes the water and distributes the pressurized water to the water jets for re-introduction into the tub.
The recirculation pump typically includes a motor driving an impeller-type centrifugal pump through an inter-connecting drive shaft. The motor/pump assembly is typically mounted on a portion of the floor structure upon which the tub structure is supported, or, in some case, on an adjacent wall structure. In general, the motor/pump assembly is supported on a stamped metal mounting plate or `saddle` which, in turn, is connected to the supporting floor structure via a resilient elastomer pad that functions to isolate the vibrations developed by the rotating motor and its driven pump from the floor structure. The elastomer pad was typically molded as a rectangular pad from a silicone-like material with a series of spaced, parallel ribs on one side thereof aligned along the longer axis of the pad and another set of spaced, parallel ribs on the opposite side of the pad aligned along the shorter axis of the pad and orthogonal to the ribs on the opposite side. An elongated bolt-hole was provided adjacent each corner of the elastomer pad with a thin-walled resilient sleeve designed to extend into its respective similarly sized elongated hole in the stamped metal saddle. In order to secure the saddle and the elastomer pad to the floor structure, a bolt was passed through the co-aligned holes of the saddle and the elastomer pad into the floor structure to secure the components to the floor structure. Typically, elastomer disc or washer was mounted between the head of each mounting bolt and the stamped metal saddle to further isolate the vibrational energy from the floor structure.
From the standpoint of installation time and cost, a four-bolt mounting represented a defined labor cost. In view of the competition-driven downward cost pressures in this industry, a mounting system that required less installation time and lower cost would provide a competitive advantage.